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Victor Wembanyama, the transcendent superstar who routinely pauses before each question to genuinely reflect for an earnest response, didn’t need any extra seconds when asked about the Knicks.
“It’s a great team, you know,” Wembanyama told reporters Tuesday on the eve of Game 1 of the NBA Finals. “It’s a great team of experienced guys who are not here by chance, but by relentless effort over the years. Very different career paths for all of them. They’re right where they’re supposed to be, in my opinion. All of them are going to be super hungry in their own way.”
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In a number of ways, Wembanyama’s answer — in accordance with his fellow teammates’ various remarks concerning their Finals opponent — spoke to an elevated level of respect, an understanding of what to expect from a matchup standpoint and an appreciation of the individual journeys that led both teams to the mecca of basketball.
San Antonio enters somewhat unfamiliar territory against New York, a stark contrast to Oklahoma City, a team it had faced 12 times by the time Game 7 of the conference finals rolled around. The Spurs faced the Knicks three times this season — twice in the regular season and once in the NBA Cup final, losing on two occasions — but the majority of meetings came with its own caveats. Wembanyama and Julian Champagnie, the unsung hero of Game 7, both came off the bench in mid-December. Devin Vassell and Josh Hart were unavailable for the infamous Christmas Day showdown.
The lone, unadulterated fixture, a 114-89 March blowout win for New York, offered both a blueprint for not only how Wembanyama could be handled, but a reminder of the depth that sustains a Knicks team with a 19-point average margin of victory in postseason play.
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Karl-Anthony Towns spent the bulk of the time deployed on Wembanyama — limiting the Frenchman to 10 points on 3-for-7 shooting and two turnovers — but OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson also spent significant possessions defending Wemby as well. (Robinson, who…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/2026-nba-finals-can-victor-wembanyama-continue-his-ascension-against-super-hungry-knicks-211742892.html
Author : Kelly Iko
Publish date : 2026-06-02 21:17:00
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